MADRID, Spain.- The United States deployed off the coast of Cuba a surveillance hot-air balloon belonging to the Captive Aerostatic Radar System (TARS), a device used for long-range aerial and maritime surveillance. The device, identified with the registration number N807XR, operates from the Florida Keys, north of Cudjoe Cay, about 145 kilometers from Havana and at an approximate altitude of 2.5 kilometers.
The system, manufactured by the American company Lockheed Martin and operated by the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP), is part of the usual aerial surveillance infrastructure deployed by Washington in the Caribbean region.
The presence of the balloon was reported by the Russian state agency TASS, which cited an air traffic control source. According to that source, the launch of the device was notified to air control stations, which in turn informed airspace users about its operation.
“The stratospheric balloon, designed for continuous monitoring and control, even across national borders, currently operates at a low altitude – about 2.5 kilometers – and is located over Florida Bay, near Key West, USA,” said the source cited by TASS.
Data from the FlightRadar24 aerial tracking platform this Monday showed the device in operation at the indicated altitude. The TARS system – popularly known as “the eye in the sky” – is designed to elevate high-power radars capable of detecting aircraft and vessels flying or sailing at low altitude, with a range of up to 322 kilometers, overcoming the horizon limitations of ground-based radars.
The deployment coincides with naval operations in the area
The deployment occurs in a context of increased US surveillance activities in areas near Cuba.
Over the weekend at least three US military vessels were operating within close range of the territorial waters of Cuba, according to data obtained from monitoring public maritime maps of the VesselFinder platform.
One of the vessels was located around 11:00 am on February 8, less than eight nautical miles from the Cuban coast, in front of Cayo Romano Occidental, in a strip close to the limit of the island’s maritime space.
The presence of these naval units is part of Washington’s maritime deployment as part of Operation Southern Spear, a military and maritime security campaign active in the Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific since 2025. The operation is under the direction of the United States Southern Command and the Fourth Fleet of the United States Navy.
According to official information, the objective of Southern Spear is to detect, monitor and intercept illicit activities in the maritime sphere, particularly those related to drug trafficking, smuggling, the transportation of oil subject to sanctions and the operations of transnational criminal networks.
